Photograph

The Peru Project – Low Cost Housing for the United Nations: Composite bamboo/polyurethane foam beam and planks – Photographs of mock-ups

01/01/1969

Construction Experiment & Mock-up

Photograph of real size mock-up of a composite bamboo/polyurethane foam plank, laid over a beam, with sand-sulphur topping on the planks to form the upper walking surface, accompanied by a detail section drawing.
It was exhibited at the Locus Manifesto-exposition “Re-enchant the World: Architecture and the City facing society´s transitions”, in Science Cabinet 2.

Photographer:

Christopher Alexander/C.E.S., Lima, U.S.A.

Source:

Digital, Negative

Characteristics:

3 1/2"x5 3/8", 5 1/4"x5 5/8", 35mm , B&W

Content of

Construction Innovation

References

Scientific Research

Innovative Construction Systems, Techniques and Materials

Areas of focus:

Design and Building Process

Guiding idea:

Construction Innovation

One of the main topics of research, included in every building project, was to identify, early on in the design process, the material and techniques of construction. This would re-establish building as an art, and allow rapid shaping and adaptation, ...

Projects

Peru Project - Low Cost Housing for the United Nations 1969 to 1970

11km north of Lima, Lima, Peru

Master Planning, Low Cost Housing, Realized , Invited Competition, Proposal submitted in 1970

Client:

Mr. Peter Land, United Nations coordinator of PREVI project

C.E.S. staff:

Christopher Alexander, Sanford Hirshen, Sara Ishikawa, Christie Coffin, Shlomo Angel

Sponsor:

United Nations

Project cost:

$1,800-$3,800 / house

Project stages:

Pattern language for the project by C.E.S. Generic rules for choice process Preliminary Design Innovative construction methods

Master plan for a community of 1500 houses, submitted as one out of twelve other competition entries for the United Nations sponsored international housing competition PREVI (Proyecto Experimental de Vivienda). The Center for Environmental Structure was chosen as the ...

Public Events

Locus Manifesto-exposition "Re-enchant the World: Architecture and the City facing Society´s Transitions" 21/05/2014 to 06/10/2014

The Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine, Paris, France

Exhibition

C.E.S. staff:

Maggie Moore, Artemis Anninou, Lily Alexander

Organized by:

LOCUS Foundation & Cité de l'Architecture & du Patrimoine - Marie-Hélène Contal, Curator

The 40 architects already awarded the Global Award for Sustainable Architecture participated and exhibited their works. The exhibition was on international touring until 2016. Christopher Alexander’s participation included the extensive presentation of the Mexicali project in the “Saving the People’s Habitat” ...

Visual & Audio Materials

Locus Manifesto-exposition: CES presented aspects of the research for a project pattern language, taking into account the uniqueness of its users and need for cost-effective solutions, as implemented in the Peru Project 30/05/2014

Public Event, Visual, Exhibition Board

Created by:

Lily Alexander, Artemis Anninou, Maggie Moore, Center for Environmental Structure, Berkeley, CA, U.S.A.

Eleven boards in Science Cabinet #1 of the exhibit were devoted to the Peru project. The first two include photos related to the Peruvian life, as depicted by CES members while investigating the appropriateness of various patterns. The next pages ...

Drawings

The Peru Project - Low Cost Housing for the United Nations: Composite bamboo & polyurethane foam planks 01/01/1969

Construction Innovation, Preliminary Design, Section, Details

Designers:

Christopher Alexander, Sanford Hirshen, Sara Ishikawa, Christie Coffin, Shlomo Angel, Lima, Peru

Medium:

Original on Tracing Paper

Size:

5 5/8"x17 3/4"

Detail section of a composite bamboo/polyurethane foam plank, laid over a beam, with sand-sulphur topping on the planks to form the upper walking surface .